G.R. No. L-39401 September 30, 1982
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. BERTO SIMBRA and SERGIO TOLIBAS, accused. SERGIO TOLIBAS, accused-appellant.

FACTS

The accused, Sergio Tolibas and Berto Simbra, were charged with the rape of 16-year-old Gresilda Gonzales on the evening of May 24, 1972, in Butuan City. The prosecution evidence established that while the complainant was fetching water, the two accused, smelling of liquor, accosted her. Simbra grabbed her, and Tolibas covered her mouth with a handkerchief. They dragged her to a secluded pile of sawdust called a “serin.” There, with Tolibas holding her arms and covering her mouth, Simbra forcibly had carnal knowledge of her twice. Subsequently, with Simbra’s assistance, Tolibas also succeeded in having intercourse with her three times against her will. Afterward, they threatened to kill her if she reported the incident and took her to a house where she was guarded until her rescue the following day. A medical examination confirmed recent hymenal lacerations and the presence of spermatozoa.
The appellant, Sergio Tolibas, presented a different version. He claimed the complainant was Simbra’s sweetheart and that they all voluntarily went to the “serin,” where she consented to have sexual intercourse first with Simbra and then with him. He asserted that no force was used, arguing that the absence of bodily injuries on the complainant disproved the allegation of rape.

ISSUE

The core issue is whether the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Sergio Tolibas committed rape through the use of force and intimidation, or if his defense of consensual sexual intercourse is credible.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, rejecting the appellant’s defense as inherently incredible. The Court emphasized that the testimony of the complainant was clear, consistent, and credible. The lack of contusions or abrasions on her body does not negate rape, as the force applied by two men in holding her down, covering her mouth, and pinning her was sufficient to overcome the resistance of a 15-year-old girl without causing external injuries beyond the hymenal lacerations corroborated by medical evidence. The Court found the appellant’s narrative of a woman willingly submitting to successive intercourse with two men in each other’s presence to be contrary to human experience and ordinary behavior, citing People vs. Soriano.
The legal logic establishes that Tolibas committed two distinct acts of consummated rape. First, he is guilty as a principal by direct participation for his own carnal knowledge of the victim through force. Second, he is guilty as a principal by indispensable cooperation for aiding Simbra by holding the victim and covering her mouth, thereby enabling Simbra to commit rape. Consequently, the penalty was modified, and appellant Sergio Tolibas was sentenced to suffer two penalties of reclusion perpetua.